Researchers Develop An Ice Cube That Doesn’t Melt!

A group of California researchers has developed an ice cube that doesn’t melt and can be reused. The ice is being called “jelly ice” and could help reduce a lot of food waste.

The researchers at the University of California Davis’s Robert Mondavi Institute of Wine and Food Sciences are working to re-imagine the ice cube, creating something that stays just as cold for just as long.

While it stays just as cold, jelly ice has one key difference from regular ice; it has a gelatin membrane that traps water in its cube-like shape and doesn’t let it melt.

On top of that, it doesn’t make a mess! The version of ice can also be manipulated to take any form, which could help change how food is kept cold while transported.

Associate professor Luxin Wang had originated the idea for jelly ice after visiting a fish market, realizing there needed to be a better way to keep things cool without the dangers of melted ice.

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Inadequate climate control across the supply chain and cross-contamination are the leading causes of food waste. For example, a study from 2013 by the Global Environmental Change discovered nearly half of all seafood in the U.S. spoils before getting to the market.

Now thanks to Wang, the alternative could allow for less food waste. Not to mention the jelly ice isn’t made out of plastic but a compostable protein. Wang reported that it is 90% water, 100% biodegradable, and can be reused up to a dozen times.

Wang and her team have been awarded a grant to continue their research into the jelly ice.